Police are looking to recruit an eye in the sky to support front line operations.

The force is advertising for expressions of interest from suppliers who can provide a drone facility. They will provide a 24-hour call-out to assist with road traffic collisions, area searches and crime scene investigations.

The drones will capture video footage and still images and be able to provide a live video feed as well as a live time thermal image feed.

They will need to be able to operate in a range of environments including bad weather conditions.

The initial term of contact will be 12 months and the applicants must have all appropriate Isle of Man Civil Aviation permissions.

Introduction of drone technology is part of the digital strategy launched by the constabulary in 2016, with other planned innovations including body-worn cameras, mobile speed detection cameras and automatic number plate recognition.

Chief Constable Gary Roberts said the force’s vision is to use technology to predict, respond to and ultimately to prevent crime.

Drone operators wishing to express an interest are asked to contact Inspector Allan Thompson at police headquarters in Douglas or email him at allan.thompson@gov.im

An 82-year-old man who went missing from a Hingham retirement community was found safe in Brockton on Thursday morning.

BROCKTON – An elderly man who stole a vehicle from Hingham and went missing for about 16 hours was located at a city high school on Thursday morning.

School police officers assigned to Brockton High School located the stolen Lexus SUV with heavy front-end damage parked outside the school about 6:30 a.m. They then located the missing man, identified as 82-year-old John Kelliher, and brought him inside the cafeteria for warmth.

Darren Duarte, the chief of staff for Mayor Bill Carpenter, said police noticed “what appeared to be a disoriented senior citizen outside of the high school” and brought him inside.

A Silver Alert was issued for Kelliher by Hingham police about 8 p.m. on Wednesday. They said Kelliher, who has Alzheimer’s disease, had last been seen about 2 p.m. at Linden Ponds, a retirement community where he lives.

Police reported that an employee’s 2013 Lexus RX SUV had been stolen and Kelliher was likely driving it.

On Wednesday night, police used canines and a drone to search for Kelliher, but were not successful.

On Thursday morning, Hingham police learned that Kelliher was seen in Taunton about 6 a.m. A motorist called to report the stolen SUV, driven by Kelliher, had crashed into a snowbank, but he drove off before police arrived.

Brockton school police officers then located Kelliher, who was uninjured, at the high school on Thursday morning about 6:30 a.m.

Kelliher was taken by ambulance to Good Samaritan Medical Center in Brockton for an evaluation and his family was notified that he was safe.

Hingham police Sgt. Steven Dearth said Kelliher will not face charges in town related to the vehicle theft. Police in Brockton also said they won’t file any charges.

The stolen SUV, which was recovered at the high school, was towed from the scene.

A school district spokeswoman referred all questions to the mayor’s office.

CROWN POINT — City public safety, special events and engineering departments are hovering into a new tech era with the aid of a municipal drone.

The Crown Point Board of Works has approved a purchase, not to exceed $5,000, for a flying drone, equipment and certification for users.

The airborne devices allow high vantage points for surveillance and photos, including at crime scenes.

The city also will seek waivers through the Federal Aviation Administration for flying the drone at night, flying above crowds and flying out of line-of-sight, Crown Point Information Technology Director Adam Graper said.

The unmanned aerial system would be used for public safety, engineering and special events, city officials said.

Crown Point Police General Services Officer Nathan Way, who has experience using drone tech, would be one of the municipal employees certified to use the city’s drone.

The city is considering a Phantom 4 Pro drone that costs about $1,500, not including accessories.

Graper said other communities are using drones, including Gary and Valparaiso police departments, to assist in a variety of investigations, including locating missing people and taking aerial photos at crime scenes.

Valparaiso police Sgt. Mike Grennes has said drones are especially useful during missing persons investigations, allowing officers wider views of large areas within short windows of time.

Police officials in Valparaiso said state law limits how drones can be used in investigations, including prohibitions on gathering information in private areas without a warrant.

Valparaiso police IT Officer Phil Rochon previously told The Times less than 2 percent of law enforcement agencies nationwide had FAA certification to use drones.

Drones may have been among the most popular Christmas gifts this year for residents, but cities are also exploring the evolving technology for professional uses.

Phoenix is evaluating how it can use the unmanned aircraft to simplify or speed up its operations. In the future, the city hopes to use drones to assist with mountain rescues, police situations and even marketing.

But recent meeting discussions about how the city can use drones left some council members with questions about how the public can use the popular devices.

Amateur and unlicensed drone users are a growing part of the population. The Federal Aviation Administration predicts that hobbyists’ drones will increase from 1.9 million in 2016 to as many as 4.3 million by 2020.

Vice Mayor Laura Pastor, who said she bought two drones for her children at Christmas, said at a meeting Wednesday she was surprised to learn all of the legal stipulations and ramifications of drones.

“As the mother of two drones, I now need to figure this out,” Pastor said.

The Phoenix Police Department is trying to educate hobbyists on those laws. Here’s a look at what you can and can’t to do as a hobbyist.

John Nunes pilots his drone, January 10, 2018, at Kiwanis
John Nunes pilots his drone, January 10, 2018, at Kiwanis Park, 6111 S All America Way, Tempe. (Photo: Mark Henle/The Republic)
How to legally fly drones in Phoenix

Because drones enter airspace — which is controlled by the federal government — but could land on or take off from city land, a hodgepodge of rules applies to drone users.

The FAA requires a license for commercial and professional operators, but not hobbyists. To fly a drone without a license, an operator must follow these rules, according to the FAA:

Fly for recreation only.
Register the drone with the FAA. (It’s $5 every three years.)
Keep the drone within sight while flying.
Follow safety guidelines.
Drone must weigh less than 55 pounds.
Never fly near other aircraft.
Never fly near emergency situations.
SEE ALSO: My Turn: Sick of drones getting in the way? Blame the feds for that

In 2016, Phoenix considered adopting its own drone regulations, but a state law passed the same year limited what cities can regulate regarding drones.

That same law also made any violation of federal drone policies — like operating a drone near an emergency situation — a criminal offense under state law.

Under the 2016 law, cities can only regulate drone use in public parks. Phoenix has limited drones to eight parks:

“Law enforcement across Arizona is grappling on how they’re going to conduct drone enforcement,” said Sgt. Blake Carlson of the Phoenix Police Department’s Homeland Defense Bureau.

The Phoenix Police Department adopted enforcement policies for drone use in November, which reflect the state and federal laws regarding drones.

Carlson said the department does not plan to arrest people for improper drone use unless it puts people at a safety risk.

If an officer comes across a drone operator who’s using the device in an improper area, the officer will first try to educate. The department has not yet arrested anyone for illegal use, according to department officials.

“We see the major violators as potentially the hobbyists who don’t know all the rules, who haven’t studied up on FAA regulations regarding drone use,” Carlson said.

Here are some of the most frequent drone violations, according to the police department policies:

Flying a drone within five miles of an airport without special permission.
Flying a drone more than 400 feet above the ground.
Flying a drone out of sight of the operator.
Flying a drone over a large crowd of people, including stadiums and sporting events.
Flying a drone at night.
Flying a drone in a way that disrupts other aircraft.
John Nunes pilots his drone, January 10, 2018, at Kiwanis
John Nunes pilots his drone, January 10, 2018, at Kiwanis Park, 6111 S All America Way, Tempe. (Photo: Mark Henle/The Republic)
How the city could use drones

City staffers are formulating a policy for professional drone usage by employees that would allow at least 10 city departments to use drones to improve or speed up their duties.

Many cities, including Mesa and Scottsdale, are already using drones for public safety situations, but Phoenix has yet to embrace the new technology.

The drone policy will balance the effectiveness of drones with resident concerns about privacy, according to city staff. A final policy will come before council later this year.

TOLEDO (13abc Action News) UPDATE: ‪Toledo police have found the missing teenager. They posted the following message on Facebook: “Thankfully, Quamell Jones has been found safe … A passerby saw him walking on the AW Trail by Sherwood. Thank you for the shares. Great job to the citizen that stopped and called #toledopolice! ‬Thanks to the teachers from Autism Model Academy that joined the search.”

Toledo Police tell 13abc that officers are still searching for 15-year-old Quamell Jones. Quamell was last seen on N. Holland Sylvania early Saturday morning. The teen has autism and police say he functions at an 8-year-old level. Wind chills overnight were below zero. Toledo Police said they have K-9s, marked units, and even a drone looking for the autistic teenager.

Quamell is a black male and was last seen wearing a puffy style black coat, blue jeans, and brown shoes. He weighs 120 pounds and it 5’9″.

He used to live on Fernwood and attends the Autism Model Academy over on Tremainsville. If you have any idea of where Quamell Jones may be, call 9-1-1 or 419-245-1111. LINK

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said that the unmanned aircrafts are state of the art and they will help respond to official police business at a faster rate. Officials said the drones are more cost-effective than manned aircraft and can be used in risky environments, including natural disasters, that would endanger troopers. NY state troopers are at the forefront of artificial intelligence as they will deploy drones in certain areas to conduct official police work. Four drones are scheduled to take flight this month – one each for State Police Troops A, D, F and G – with 14 additional automatons slated to be deployed by the State Police by April. State officials believe with drones, it will be easier and faster to reconstruct serious motor vehicle crashes, resulting in shorter road closures and reducing the impact on motorists. The new program will be used to support law enforcement missions, including disaster response and traffic safety. A drone flying with an airplane passing overhead above Old Bethpage, New York. “We will continue to implement innovative technologies to improve our ability to protect New Yorkers”, the governor added Wednesday. Troopers who will operate the drones will be certified by the FAA and undergo 32 hours of hands-on training. State police in western New York will be among the first across New York State to use drone technology to assist with law enforcement efforts. The drones can also be used in risky situations, including natural disasters, to keep troopers safe. The state Department of Environmental Conservation has a 22-drone fleet that they use for a variety of purposes, including evaluating eroded coastline on Lake Ontario past year. Newburgh Gazette Link